Radiance Captured
by SwankyJanks
Summary: When Aradia slapped Sollux beneath the moon that night neither of them had any idea of the parts they had played in upsetting the balance of the universe. What follows is an adventure of rivalries, monsters, time travel, second chances, & love. AU


**Disclaimer:** This is a product of fiction based on another product of fiction.

There was a lunar corona in the sky that night. Though I'd seen "moonbows" before I am always dazed by them &amp; this occasion was particularly remarkable. It was not only remarkable for its brilliance, but also for the brilliance I encountered in meeting Aradia Megido after stepping out of work that night to find her gazing up at the sky.

I was on my way to the parking lot when I saw her. She was sitting on a bench overlooking the pond. The colors of the moonbow reflected off the pond, illuminating her face with the identical haze of the moon above. The deep blues of the night mixed with the red of her tinted black hair. In that vibrant moment I was stunned. She was mesmerizing.

I stopped in my tracks when her radiance caught my eye. I was tentative to continue on, thinking that somehow I might disturb her peace if she noticed me. I would have also felt foolish if she'd noticed the way I was gawking at her. Trying to remain discreet, I sat down at a farther bench for lack of any better idea. Part of me hoped she'd slip away like a ghost in the night, but another part hoped she'd stay so I could muster up the nerve to ask her name.

I'd never been worked up like this over another person before. Generally I am reclusive &amp; prefer the company of my computer. Something about her seemed important though. I felt as if I would see her again. As I wondered about this possibility, I took the opportunity to light up a cigarette. I figured I might as well while I had a chance to sit, &amp; besides, it gave me something to do. An alibi.

My mind wandered towards possibilities of striking up a conversation. What could I say? Nothing came to mind. What words were there to convey? She left me speechless. I burrowed into my aimless attack plan, muttering different intonations of "hello" to myself.

"Hello. . . ._Hello._ . . .Hell_O_. . . ."

"Hello?"

My heart jumped into my throat. Her voice carried well from downwind of where I was sitting, beneath the reeds of a willow tree. I'd assumed she couldn't see me from under the reeds. Actually, I was right.

"I can _smell _you…" What? "...I know you're there."

What the..._smell_ me? That definitely threw me off guard, but not as much as what she did next.

This girl whom I'd never met before marched right up to the willow tree, swept aside the curtain of reeds, &amp; _slapped_ me!

&amp; then she gasped.

"Who _are_ you?"

"Who are _you?_" I retorted with a wince. She had a mean slap.

"_Aradia?_"

I turned &amp; saw a tough looking muscleman striding towards us. Whether he was striding with indifference or indignation was hard to tell by his tacky shades. As he came closer I realized he really just was indifferent.

"Babe, I told you to meet me at the west bank of the pond. Why did you hit that guy?"

Aradia flushed a deep red &amp; eyed me embarrassedly. As if to apologize, she explained, "I was distracted by the lunar corona &amp; lost my bearings. I smelled his cigarette &amp; assumed you'd cheated our agreement. I also wanted to surprise you. Instead I made an ass of myself to both of you. Um...who are you again?"

Stunned, I said, "Th-Thollux."

Muscles intervened to say, "Right. Well, it was nice meeting you Thollux. Sorry about my girlfriend."

With that Muscles took Aradia's hand &amp; pulled her away. They walked off muttering about the difference between a lunar corona &amp; a corona beer.

I suppose that was the most remarkable part of that dazzling first occasion with Aradia. She not only appreciated the moonbow, she knew that it in fact was not a moonbow but an entirely different phenomenon - one in which an ultraviolet rainbow forms a halo around a golden haze of light diffracting the wispy strands of ice particles in the atmosphere. She was indeed brilliant.


End file.
